Main Engine Cut Off

NASA and Boeing laid out Starliner’s return-to-flight plan as SpaceX prepares to leave Dragon behind. I talk through the weak demand signal for crewed flight in LEO, how NASA’s commitment to the ISS and commercial stations boxed themselves into this decision, and what to do between here and the Moon.

SpaceX officially announced Starbase Louisiana, and I break down why the site fits Starship’s launch, landing, and orbital architecture so perfectly. I also look at the transition from Falcon to Starship, and the new launch vehicles on the verge of debut.

Andrew Jones returns to the show to catch up on the Chinese space industry—the landings of Zhuque-3 and Long March 10B first stages, Chang’e-7 and its delay, and more.

Justin Fiaschetti, Co-Founder and CEO of Inversion Space, joins me to talk about the company’s plan to store maneuverable reentry vehicles in orbit for rapid cargo delivery, the design and architecture decisions driving Arc including cross-range requirements and payload accomodations, and how they see the market for these services.

Rocket Lab is buying Iridium for $8 billion, Blue Origin has a new plan to get New Glenn flying again without rebuilding the same pad architecture, and NASA just awarded four new CLPS missions.